Australia won't win 2022 WC

[Someone2]

JT suspended for 3weeks

 

[Homo man69]

The pommy forums are raving on about how crap Australia are right now. They are convinced it will be them and NZ in the final. We still have a dam good team and the only worry is Mal's QLD love affair and making bias selections

 

[Clarkent]

The pommy forums are raving on about how crap Australia are right now. They are convinced it will be them and NZ in the final. We still have a dam good team and the only worry is Mal's QLD love affair and making bias selections

Do the poms know that James Graham and Sam Burgess retired? They need to worry about samoa first

 

[Perth Red]

I honestly can't see England beating Samoa or Tonga. The amount of depth and star quality in players has gone up another level since the last world cup for the island nations and England looks like they haven't improved at all since Graham and Burgess retired.

Will be a task but home ground advantage might tip it. There’s some good young talent in the England squad but the size difference and lack of hard heads in England pack worry me, especially now Walmsley is out.

 

[MKCS]

The pommy forums are raving on about how crap Australia are right now. They are convinced it will be them and NZ in the final. We still have a dam good team and the only worry is Mal's QLD love affair and making bias selections

I think the final will be Australia/New Zealand (I'd give Australia the slight edge but could go either way) Vs Samoa. For me looking at the Samoan team they've got a young powerful team with some good experience whilst England has an old team with 3/4 of the spine being 30+ and a lot of older legs tipped to make the squad. As a matter of fact, my prediction is that England will likely get bundled out by Tonga in the quarter finals.

Australia isn't as strong as it has been in recent years but still easily have the best side on paper. Tedesco, Addo-Carr, Mitchell, Holmes, Munster, Cleary, Cherry-Evans, Grant, Hunt, Murray, Yeo etc are no slouches and will destroy everyone except maybe New Zealand, Samoa and Tonga.

 

[Gobsmacked]

I think the final will be Australia/New Zealand (I'd give Australia the slight edge but could go either way) Vs Samoa. For me looking at the Samoan team they've got a young powerful team with some good experience whilst England has an old team with 3/4 of the spine being 30+ and a lot of older legs tipped to make the squad. As a matter of fact, my prediction is that England will likely get bundled out by Tonga in the quarter finals.

Australia isn't as strong as it has been in recent years but still easily have the best side on paper. Tedesco, Addo-Carr, Mitchell, Holmes, Munster, Cleary, Cherry-Evans, Grant, Hunt, Murray, Yeo etc are no slouches and will destroy everyone except maybe New Zealand, Samoa and Tonga.

I think the structure will lead to New Zealand vs Australia in the quarter finals.

 

[Stinkfinger]

I think the structure will lead to New Zealand vs Australia in the quarter finals.

One but not both of them would have to finish 2nd in their group for this to happen. The draw appears to be designed so that Australia can't meet NZ in the final, ie England make the final.

 

[Stinkfinger]

I think the final will be Australia/New Zealand (I'd give Australia the slight edge but could go either way) Vs Samoa. For me looking at the Samoan team they've got a young powerful team with some good experience whilst England has an old team with 3/4 of the spine being 30+ and a lot of older legs tipped to make the squad. As a matter of fact, my prediction is that England will likely get bundled out by Tonga in the quarter finals.

You have Samoa beating England in the pool game. You underestimate the ability of Pommy refs to get the result required, you only have to watch SuperLeague, particularly matches involving French teams, to understand what is going on here. I think Tonga and Samoa will meet in a quarter, and the winner will get England in a semi. I do think the financial success of this tournament is dependent on England making the final, and that will happen one way or another.

 

[Clarkent]

I think the final will be Australia/New Zealand (I'd give Australia the slight edge but could go either way) Vs Samoa. For me looking at the Samoan team they've got a young powerful team with some good experience whilst England has an old team with 3/4 of the spine being 30+ and a lot of older legs tipped to make the squad. As a matter of fact, my prediction is that England will likely get bundled out by Tonga in the quarter finals.

Australia isn't as strong as it has been in recent years but still easily have the best side on paper. Tedesco, Addo-Carr, Mitchell, Holmes, Munster, Cleary, Cherry-Evans, Grant, Hunt, Murray, Yeo etc are no slouches and will destroy everyone except maybe New Zealand, Samoa and Tonga.

Agree Samoa has the edge on Tonga due to better halves and and maybe fullback because of Suaali'i. And Samoa has Danny Levi too who's a natural hooker. But never count out Tongas passion and there massive forward pack. England will definitely be worried

 

[Perth Red]

You have Samoa beating England in the pool game. You underestimate the ability of Pommy refs to get the result required, you only have to watch SuperLeague, particularly matches involving French teams, to understand what is going on here. I think Tonga and Samoa will meet in a quarter, and the winner will get England in a semi. I do think the financial success of this tournament is dependent on England making the final, and that will happen one way or another.

Finals nearly sold out. Wont need England in it to sell out I suspect. Need them in the semi though.

 

[Clarkent]

You have Samoa beating England in the pool game. You underestimate the ability of Pommy refs to get the result required, you only have to watch SuperLeague, particularly matches involving French teams, to understand what is going on here. I think Tonga and Samoa will meet in a quarter, and the winner will get England in a semi. I do think the financial success of this tournament is dependent on England making the final, and that will happen one way or another.

I think Englands still paying off the ref from the last world cup against tonga

 

[Clarkent]

Anyone know when the rwc squads gets announced?

 

[Smug Panther]

Agree Samoa has the edge on Tonga due to better halves and and maybe fullback because of Suaali'i. And Samoa has Danny Levi too who's a natural hooker. But never count out Tongas passion and there massive forward pack. England will definitely be worried

Danny Levi is a terrible footballer

 

[Clarkent]

Danny Levi is a terrible footballer

He's been playing well in the SL and against England I'll take my chances

 

[Ernest the Sheep]

what? No ones whinging about Australian born players choosing to play origin and play for Australia lol. The issue is a rule that clearly is in place to weaken NZ for no good reason, and that limits choices players have. Its a dumb rule, as is the notion of tiering nations. If they are eligible for origin under its rules great. If they are eligible for NZ or England under RLIF rules, great. The two are not determinant on each other! Of course every cloud and all that, the rule does mean more good players nominate for the PI nations and stops NZ dominating international RL lol.

How many of this years 40 or so Origin players COULD be eligible for NZ if they so chose and the stupid rule wasnt in place?

But you are. The vast majority of the PI players who are eligible for both Aus, NZ and their country of heritage were born in Aus. Maybe you are really just whinging because the rule stops NZ poaching PI players with tenuous links to NZ? It's a good rule if you ask me. We want the PI nations to be strong as possible, which wouldn't necessarily be so given NZ's record of poaching talent if given half a chance to.

 

[Matua]

But you are. The vast majority of the PI players who are eligible for both Aus, NZ and their country of heritage were born in Aus. Maybe you are really just whinging because the rule stops NZ poaching PI players with tenuous links to NZ? It's a good rule if you ask me. We want the PI nations to be strong as possible, which wouldn't necessarily be so given NZ's record of poaching talent if given half a chance to.

You've got yourself in a little state here ... how is NZ selecting players eligible for NZ poaching? Yet it appears it's fine for you when PI teams select eligible players neither born nor raised in the islands (which I don't have a problem with either, aside from Taumalolo I hope he's banned from entering NZ with the way he defected ).

I can't speak for @Perth Red but for me the rule is a problem because it restricts the players choice on who they can play for to the end benefit of Australia. I don't care if they want to play for NZ or for a PI team but it should be the players choice. Mulitalo's decision when he was booted from Origin suggests that more players might choose NZ than we think.

 

[Ernest the Sheep]

You've got yourself in a little state here ... how is NZ selecting players eligible for NZ poaching? Yet it appears it's fine for you when PI teams select eligible players neither born nor raised in the islands (which I don't have a problem with either, aside from Taumalolo I hope he's banned from entering NZ with the way he defected ).

I can't speak for @Perth Red but for me the rule is a problem because it restricts the players choice on who they can play for to the end benefit of Australia. I don't care if they want to play for NZ or for a PI team but it should be the players choice. Mulitalo's decision when he was booted from Origin suggests that more players might choose NZ than we think.

I'm in a state? You project, surely? I still can't follow what you are whinging about. Players with multiple eligibility are free to choose which team they play for. If they would rather play origin ahead of, say NZ, then too bad. The case of Mulitalo is actually quite disturbing. He should have been allowed to play origin, but an arbitrary discriminatory (and borderline racist) ruling prevented him from doing so. I'm not surprised he then chose to play for NZ after such shameful treatment from Aus. The only problem you have with the rule is that it prevents NZ from poaching PI players with tenuous connections to NZ!

 

[England87]

This forum has way too many keyboard warrior nerds for a rugby league website

 

[Matua]

I'm in a state? You project, surely? I still can't follow what you are whinging about. Players with multiple eligibility are free to choose which team they play for. If they would rather play origin ahead of, say NZ, then too bad. The case of Mulitalo is actually quite disturbing. He should have been allowed to play origin, but an arbitrary discriminatory (and borderline racist) ruling prevented him from doing so. I'm not surprised he then chose to play for NZ after such shameful treatment from Aus. The only problem you have with the rule is that it prevents NZ from poaching PI players with tenuous connections to NZ!

No they're not, stop pretending otherwise. They are free to choose which team they play for aside from the Kiwis (and England), they have limited freedom and that is not free.

Why should Mulitalo been allowed to play Origin when he didn't meet their criteria? It's not racist, he's a NZer who migrated to Australia too late to qualify for Origin. Arbitrary yes, but not based on race.

Also stop pretending that NZ is poaching PI players of tenuous connections, they either have them or they don't. Do you think Mulitalo has tenuous connections to NZ?

 

[Ernest the Sheep]

No they're not, stop pretending otherwise. They are free to choose which team they play for aside from the Kiwis (and England), they have limited freedom and that is not free.

Why should Mulitalo been allowed to play Origin when he didn't meet their criteria? It's not racist, he's a NZer who migrated to Australia too late to qualify for Origin. Arbitrary yes, but not based on race.

Also stop pretending that NZ is poaching PI players of tenuous connections, they either have them or they don't. Do you think Mulitalo has tenuous connections to NZ?

where did I say Mulitalo had only tenuous links to NZ? But there are plenty of suspect players NZ has poached over the years (going back a long way!) that I could name. In fact I'm sure I probably have posted a list of names on this forum before!

As for this conspiracy of yours that the Ockers are making up rules just to disadvantage the kiwis, either you have that tinfoil cap screwed on a little too tightly, or the propeller is broken and your brain is overheating.

If it really is a conspiracy then what a way for Ocker rugby league to join in the celebration of diversity and inclusion in modern Aus by introducing a rule that is both arbitrary and discriminatory (although not surprising for a sport that is run by stale old white guys.)

Like it or not, Origin is the pinnacle of the game in Aus. There is good reason to not allow Kiwis and poms to play origin. It would diminish Origin to have non-Ockers participating. You might then wonder why it is okay to have a PI player represent in origin? But there is actually logic to allowing PI players to play origin, and also represent their nation of heritage. It helps promote the game internationally, which is good of course. But there is a subtle difference with PI teams versus other sides. The PI heritage teams are basically ethnically selected teams. They share a common ethnic heritage. The Kiwi and Pom sides are selected on nationality. While Origin enthusiasts can accept that a New South Welshman or a Qlder might also be Samoan or Tongan, it's a step too far to accept that they can also be a Kiwi or a Pom!